More on the Public Role in Fostering Private Innovation
A few days ago I argued that the Maker Movement finally depends on the ingenuity and effort of private entrepreneurs and of companies large and small — but that these efforts go much faster,…
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James Fallows
356 posts
James Fallows is a longtime correspondent for The Atlantic magazine. He has reported for the magazine from around the world since the late 1970s, including extended assignments in China, Japan, and Southeast Asia, and within the United States in Texas, Washington state, and California. He has written 12 books and won the American Book Award, the National Magazine Award, and a documentary Emmy. He has also done extensive commentary on National Public Radio.
America by Air: Whitewater
In one way or another, all Clinton-era “scandals” trace back to Whitewater. That was the late-1970s Arkansas real estate deal that prompted an investigative crusade by the NYT during Bill Clinton’s presidential run in…
The Maker Movement: If Hamilton Were Around, He Would Be a Fan
If Hamilton Were Around, He Would Be a Fan
The Surprising Problem With U.S. Manufacturing: It’s Creating Too Many Jobs
An ongoing theme of our reports from “career technical” schools—like this high school in Georgia and this community college in Mississippi and these high schools and tech-training centers in California and South Carolina, and these colleges in Vermont and Maine—is that for…
The Maker Revolution: What It Has Changed, and What It Hasn’t — Yet
What It Has Changed, and What It Hasn't — Yet
Why the Maker Movement Matters: Part 2, Agility
Business are finding that "makerspaces" enable them to reduce what's known as the mind-to-market gap: how long it takes for an idea to become a thing on a shelf.
‘Mr. China’ on Making Things in America
Following this earlier post about the significance of the Maker Movement, and before an upcoming report on an unusual and significant maker/startup space in Louisville, I want to mention a very interesting WSJ interview by…
‘The Last Best Hope for Public STEM Education in Mississippi’
Over the years my wife Deb and I have frequently mentioned the remarkable Mississippi School for Mathematics and Science. You can read about some of its successes in posts collected here,…
Budget Challenges at a Remarkable Mississippi School
An update on what's happening at the Mississippi School for Mathematics and Science.
Why the Maker Movement Matters: Part 1, the Tools Revolution
Just like the internet before it, the Maker Movement is revolutionizing manufacturing, with implications for startups and jobs.
Deb Fallows at the University of Redlands
During our West Coast travels for American Futures reports in the winter of 2014-2015, my wife Deb and I were based at the University of Redlands, in southern California. From…
Awards for Civic Engagement: 37 New Examples
A big question in national politics this year is what exactly “engagement” means, beyond showing up at rallies. As Yoni Appelbaum pointed out last week, Donald Trump supporters are notable for…
Paradise Duluth
As part of the unfolding saga of start-up businesses as the crucial creators of new jobs, and of particular start-ups like craft breweries (along with tech incubators, arts companies, manufacturing “maker…
Wichita, Salisbury, Knoxville, Seattle: Revival Updates
Here are some recent developments that are related to the “America Is Putting Itself Back Together” argument in our March issue. They’re also connected to the subject of my post earlier…
On National Beer Day, Craft Brewers Improving Water, and Life, in More Ways Than One
Thanks to my Atlantic colleague Kathy Gilsinan for the reminder of why today is different from all other days: It’s National Beer Day! Congratulations to beer. Last week I did an item about the reasons…
Craft Breweries: No, I’m Not Kidding, They Actually Matter in Civic Development
If you’re going to subscribe to only one magazine — well, really you should be subscribing to more! But you could start with The Atlantic, and then move on to include, as…